What we bought in October 2021: Winter Crocs, dry shampoo for dogs, and more

If you follow Mashable Shopping's coverage, you know that we live to bring you the best product recommendations we can find based on countless hours of online research. But what about the stuff that we buy for ourselves? The stuff that made it intoour shopping carts? Well, we're here to tell you about those things, and we'll be back every month to do so again.

Here's what the staff bought in October 2021.

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The perfect fall sweatshirt

"I'm a hard-core Swiftie, so it's no surprise I'm counting down the days until Red (Taylor's Version)drops. Naturally, I already pre-ordered the album on vinyl, and this time around, I knew I also was going to need some clothing merch for all my Sad Girl Fall™ needs. A cozy sweatshirt complete with the gorgeous new and improved album artwork looks like it'll do nicely for singing in the car and getting lost upstate." —Erin Strecker, Entertainment Editor

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Opens in a new window Credit: Taylor Swift Taylor Swift crewneck

An IG-famous facial cleanser

"I’ve been on the hunt for a new facial cleanser for a while now. My last one did the job fine, but left my skin a bit tight. I’ve always loved the Glossier Milky Jelly Cleanser precisely because it did the opposite, but I went with a different influencer-friendly option this time: the Cocokind Oil to Milk Cleanser. I’ve seen Instagram ads for months, with the cleanser oozing out of the tube in a hypnotic spiral, and couldn’t resist it anymore. It is truly oil-to-milk as is the name: The texture out of the tube is jelly-like, but when wet it dissolves into a milk-like consistency right away. While the smell isn’t my favorite (though not horrible either), I love how it feels on my skin — and it leaves my face supple, just like I wanted." —Anna Iovine, Culture Reporter

Opens in a new window Credit: Cocokind Cocokind Oil to Milk Cleanser

A toothbrush upgrade

"I've had a Quip electric toothbrush for a couple of years now, but I recently bought the smart motor to upgrade my brush. It uses Bluetooth to pair with an app on my phone where I can see stats on how I brush and keep track of my brushing streak. The app shows data like how long I brush, how long I spend brushing my top teeth vs. my bottom teeth, strokes per minute, and the intensity of the brush. After the first couple of uses, I learned I wasn't giving my top teeth enough love, and I've since corrected it." —Miller Kern, Assistant Reviews Editor 

Opens in a new window Credit: Quip Quip smart motor

Some winter Crocs

"I became a Crocs person during the early days of the pandemic, and now I own three pairs. I wear my classic clogs around the house pretty much 24/7, so I decided to get some winter Crocs for the colder months. I opted for the lavender pair of the lined clogs, which are basically like slippers. I also got a little rollerblade Jibbitz charm to put in my Croc holes. Crocs, please sponsor me." —Miller Kern, Assistant Reviews Editor

Opens in a new window Credit: Crocs Classic Lined Clogs

The trendiest hiking boots

"It seems like every cool outdoorsy person I know has a pair of Blundstone boots, and after years of feeling left out, I finally bought myself a pair. I got the rustic brown color (obviously) so now I can pair them with my Patagonia fleece to signal that I am absolutely down for camping or hiking at any time." —Jae Thomas, Shopping Reporter

Opens in a new window Credit: Blundstone Blundstone Chelsea boots

Some extremely cute dryer balls

"After ditching dryer sheets, I bought these precious dryer balls to further green-ify my laundry process. (Not-great chemicals apparently seep off of dryer sheets and are single-use, of course.) I’ve definitely noticed that the movement of the dryer balls keeps me from having to turn the dryer on a million times to dry towels, and clothes still feel fluffy (they just don’t smell like Bounce). I chose sloths, but penguins, sheep, and more little creatures are available from Free the Ocean." —Leah Stodart, Shopping Reporter

Opens in a new window Credit: Free the Ocean Sloth Squad dryer balls

Some shampoo for a bathtime-hating pup

"My dog is very well-behaved, but when it comes to bathtime, she becomes a bit difficult. She's afraid of water, and I personally hate having to make her uncomfortable just to get her clean. I saw this dry shampoo in a TikTok and thought it might be the perfect thing for my dog, seeing as you don't need to get them wet to use it. She seems to love it, and now she can smell great without having to get soaked." —Dylan Haas, Shopping Reporter

Opens in a new window Credit: Dr. Cuddles Foaming pet dry shampoo

Some really nice gym headphones

"I go to the gym almost every day, but I've neglected to get myself a good pair of headphones to accompany me during my workouts. (Pro tip: AirPods and sweat do not work well together.) Though they're pricey, I've always wanted a pair of Powerbeats Pro for their overall quality and secure ear hooks. I spotted them on sale, and decided that it was now or never. Honestly, they're one of the best things I've picked up all year." —Dylan Haas, Shopping Reporter

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Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Powerbeats Pro

A new gaming headset

"The plug of my cheapo Turtle Beach Recon 70 decided to randomly break into three pieces (???) so I upgraded to the well-reviewed SteelSeries Arctis 3 when it went on sale at Best Buy. I actually bought the slightly fancier Arctis 5 first, but then had to return it because the only one left at my local store was missing the Xbox adapter. There really doesn’t seem to be much of a difference between them (aside from the 5’s RGB lighting), so no complaints." —Haley Henschel, Freelance Deals Writer

Opens in a new window Credit: SteelSeries SteelSeries Arctis 3 headset

A sunscreen with a little something extra

I'm a sucker for cute packaging, but I'm definitely not a sucker for making impulse purchases, so I don't know why seeing a few TikToks of this Tower28 foundation compelled me to open my Sephora app at 10:46 p.m. on a Wednesday. I don't even usually wear foundation. With that said, this product gives that perfect just-there glow, feels super lightweight, and doesn't break me out, so I'm glad I gave in to the algorithm." —Bethany Allard, Shopping Reporter

Opens in a new window Credit: Tower 28 SunnyDays tinted sunscreen foundation

The new MacBook Pro

"I bought a 14-inch MacBook Pro. I've been waiting for this laptop for six years; I got my last personal MacBook in 2015, and since then have been decrying Apple's lousy keyboards, lousy port selections, and general lousy design choices through a long, dark night of the laptops. Deliverance is at hand! The new MacBook Pro is everything I've been waiting for, and even the base model is probably more power than I need. Hopefully this will last at least another five years." —Sascha Segan, Lead Mobile Analyst for PCMag

Opens in a new window Credit: Apple 2021 MacBook Pro